Art of knitting stockings



(No Model) 5Sheets-Sheet 3.

B W. GOURD. ART 0.? KNITTING STOCKINGS;

' No.- 372,309. I Patented Nov. 1. 1887.

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WITNESSES- (No Model.) w 5 Sheets-Sheet 4.

E. W. GOURD. ART OF'KN ITTING STOCKINGS.

No. 372,309; Patented Nov. 1, 1887.

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UNITED STATES PATENT Fries.

TV. GOUR-D, OF WEST QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS ART OF KNITTING STOCKINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming'part of Letters Patent No. 372,309, dated November 1, 1887.

Application filed March 21, 1887. Serial No. 231,655. (No specimens.)

stockings, and has for its object the produc tion of a method whereby a full-fashioned stocking may be produced upon a circularknitting machine.

Heretofore, so far as I am aware, it has not been considered feasible to produce a fullfashioned seamed stocking on a circular-knitting machine, the straight frame being regarded as the only machine that could be practically employed for that purpose. I have found, however, after long'and careful experi ment, that this work may be performed with as great orv even greater facility upon circular as upon straight or flat frames.

My invention'consists in the art or method and submethods hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters .of reference marked thereon, forming a part of this specification, in which drawings similar letters indicate similarparts wherever they occur.

Of the drawings, Figure 1 represents a complete stocking-web, without any widenings or narr'owings, as it leaves the machine, knit in accordance wit-h my art or method. Fig. 2 represents a side View of a stocking made up from the web shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 represents a complete stocking-web, with narrowings at certain points, knit in accordance with my improved art or method. Fig. 4 is a side view of a stocking made up from the web represented in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is an outline rear View of the web shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is an outline View of the several parts of the web comprising the stocking portrayed in Fig. 4. before they are seamed together. Fig. 7 is a side view of the foot and ankle portions of a stocking-web having widcnings and narrowings at certain points, knit in accordance with my improved art or method. Fig. 8 is a rear view of the web pictured in Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is a side view of the foot and ankle of a stocking made up from the web shown in Figs.-

7 and 8. Figs. 10, 11, and 12 are diagrams, referred to hereinafter in explanation of my improved art or method.

In the practice of my art or method I may use a circular-knitting machine of any kind in which the cam-cylinder or needlecylinder, as the case may be, is capable of being reciprocated to produce knitting, and in which the needles are capable of being thrown out of and returned to action,and to hold the stitches thereon when out of operation-such, for example, as is shown and described in the patent to James L. Branson, No. 149,192, March 31, 1874.

It is quite common in knitting stockingsonmachines of the kind mentioned to'take a ribbed top, knit on machines adapted to the purpose, and pick such top on the needles and knit the remainder of the leg and foot portions of the stocking thereon; and in the mode hereinafter explained it may be supposed that a stocking is begun and the knitting proceeded with in this way.

Having reference to Fig.1,let A represent the ribbed top, which is picked upon the needles (represented by the circle in Fig. 10) at the line a a. The knitting of the remainder of the leg portion of the stocking is proceeded with by rotating the cam-cylinder until the point b b is reached, when the needles at the left in Fig. 10, from the point 1 to the point 2, are thrown out of action, still retaining their stitches, and knitting is performed on the needles still in action by reciprocating the camcylinder, as indicated by the. double-headed arrows on the right in said Fig. 10, until the point e c is reached, producing the fabric represented by B, when the web on those needles is cast off, said needles thrown out of action, and the needles before thrown out of work, and represented on the left in Fig. 10, are brought into operation, and by reciprocating the cam-cylinder, as before, the fabric 0 is produced, the web being cast off the needles at at d. The web thus knit is then made up into a complete stocking, as represented in Fig. 2, by severing the part 13 between the lines 0 e and ff, trimming or raveling back to said lines, then trimming along the line 9 g and in a suitable manner at the lower ends of the parts B and G, as indicated by the lines 7" 7, to form the toe, and, placing the parts in,

position somewhatlike that portrayed in Fig. 6, seaming them together along the lines it i i i, completing the stocking. This manner of practicing my improved mode is intended for cheap work only, the fashioning being produced wholly by trimming off portions of the web, similar to the manner of doing cut work.

In Fig. 3 I have shown a web which is produced in a manner similar to that described with reference to Fig. 1 down to the point I) b, when the needles on the half of the cylinder, as represented at the left in Fig. 11, are thrown out of action, still retaining their loops, and knitting is proceeded with upon the needles in the other half of the cylinder by reciprocating the cam-cylinder until the point in the web indicated at j j is reached, which may be supposed to complete the heel of the stocking. At said lastmentioned point at each reciprocation of the cam-cylinder a needle at each end is dropped until the point k I; is reached, when only the needles between the points 3 3, Fig. 11, may be supposed to be in operation, and said needles are retained in operation and the camcylinder is reciprocated until a web from the point k k to the point Z1 is knitted, when, one after another, the needles at each end of those in operation are dropped until the point m m is reached, when only the needles between the points at 4, Fig. 11, will be left holding loops, and these are cast off and their needles thrown out of operation. The needles indicated at the left in Fig. 11 are now brought into operation, and by reciprocating the cam-cylinder a web, as pictured between the lines I) b and a n, is knitted, when it is narrowed by throwing needles out of work at each reciprocation of the cam-cylinder, as before explained, until the point 0 0 is reached, which will leave onlysneh needles as fall between the points 5 5, Fig. 11, in operation, and from these the loops are cast off. The web is now severed along the line j j and trimmed along the linejj, if not narrowed at this point, as hereinafter described with reference to Fig. 5, and the parts placed in position as portrayed in Fig. 6, when they are scanned along the lines It kl Z Z" and looped together along the lines is Z and Z Z".

If desired, a web longer than is necessary to form the heel for the stocking shown in Fig. 4 may .be knitted, as between the lines ffj j, Fig. 5, and the fabric severed between these lines and raveled or trimmed back, as described with reference to Fig. 1; and for the purpose of shaping the heel at the rear, one after another of the needles between the points 4 4 4 may be thrown out of action, still retaining the stitches thereon, until the pointj" j is reached, which will leave the heel portion, when folded, as united between the points I; k, with floating yarns on the inner or wrong side, which floating yarns can be trimmed off. This manner of practicing my improved process will form a fulLfashioned stocking with a gore,

D, knitted on the rear of the sole portion E of the foot, as shown in Fig. 4.

In Fig. 7 I have shown a web for the foot portion of a stocking, (the leg being supposed to be produced as hereinbefore explained,) fashioned by transferring the stitches from certain needles to certain other needles, and bringing back into operation certain needles which have once been thrown out of action.

To produce a web in accordance with my method like that pictured in the last-mentioned figure, I proceed to knit from the point I) b to the point 0 0 by reciprocating the camcylinder with half the needles in operationsay those at the right of the circle between the points 1 2 in Fig. 12. At the point 0 0 in the web I commence transferring the stitches on the needles between the points 1 6 and 2 7 inward, one stitch or needle at each reciprocation of the cam-cylinder throwing the end needles out of action until the point p p is reached. This operation will have made the narrowings to have taken place on the needles knitting the wales 9 9 at the points 6 7that is, certain wales 8 8 will have the appearance of converging with or running into the wales 9 9 knit by the needles at said points 6 7.

At the pointp p, I bring all of the needles in one-half of the cylinder into operation, being those in operation when knitting was being performed between the lines I) b 0 0, which will begin the knitting of a web, as indicated at the line q q, Fig. 8, when I narrow quite rapidly by transferring, say, the stitches on the last three needles at each end of those in operation at each reciprocation of the cam-cylinder inward until the point 1 r is reached, when I proceed, without narrowing, down to the point 8 s, when I narrow as between the points q 1 until the pointt t is reached, at which point the loops are cast from the needles in operation,(being those between the points 6 7, Fig. 12,) and said needles are thrown out of action. Knitting is now resumed on the needlesiu the other half of the cylinder, being those represented by the portion of the circle at the left in Fig. 12, and knitting is done by reciprocating the cam-cylinder until the point a u is reached, when narrowing is performed, as between the points 8 s and t t, until the point 1) o is reached, when the web is cast off, severed along the line q q, the parts placed in position, as represented in Fig. 6, sewed and looped together, as described with reference to Fig. 4-, producing a full-fashioned stocking-foot like that pictured in Fig. 9, which is of the same character precisely as full-fashioned seamed stockings knitted on what is commonly known as the Cotton flat frame.

I am by the art or method explained enabled to form a web for a complete-fashioned seamed stocking on a circular frame by a method which, so far as my knowledge extends, has never heretofore been practiced.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim is- IOC 1. The improvement in the art of producing a web for a complete stocking on a circular-knitting machine, which consists in knitting the web for the leg portion as a tubular fabric, then throwing substantially one-half of the needles out of action, allowing them to retain the loops thereon, and reciprocating the cylinder to knit the heel and sole portions of the stocking-foot, then throwing the needles thus employed out of action and bringinginto operation the needles previously thrown out and reciprocating the cylinder to knit the upper portion of the foot, as set forth.

2. The improvement in the art of'producing a web for a complete stocking on a circular-knitting machine, which consists in knitting the web for the leg portion as a tubular fabric, then throwing substantially onehalf of the needles out of action, allowing them to retain the loops thereon, and reciprocating the cylinder to knit' the heel portion, gradually narrowing the fabric at the end for this purpose and retiring the needles employed in narrowing, then bringing into operation again the needles thus retired and beginning the knitting for the sole portion by reciprocating the cylinder, narrowing and retiring needles to form the gusset D, then knitting a web of substantially uniform width and of desired length, then narrowing and retiring needles to form the sole portion of the toe, then throwing the needles thus employed out of action and bringing into operation the needles previousl y thrown out and reciprocating the cylinder to knit the upper portion of the foot, gradually narrowing at the end for the toe portion, as before described, substantially as set forth.

' 3. The improvement in the art of producing a web for a complete stocking on a circular-knitting machine, which consists in knitting the web forthe leg portion as a tubular fabric, then throwing substantially one-half of the needles out of action, allowing them to retain the loops thereon, and reciprocating the cylinder to knit the heel portion, gradually narrowing the fabric at the end by transferring the loops at the ends of the series of needles in operation inward and retiring needles, then bringing into operation again the needles thus retired and beginning the knitting for the sole portion by reciprocating the cylinder, narrowing by transferring the loops, as before, and retiring needles to form the gusset D, then knitting a web of substantially uniform width and of desired length, then narrowing by transferringloops, as before, and retiring needles to form the sole portion of the toe, then throwing the needles thus employed out of action and bringing into operation the needles previously thrown out and reciprocating the cylinder to knit the upper portion of the foot and gradually narrowing at the end for the toe portion by transferring stitches and retiring needles, as before, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 12th day of March, A. D. 1887.

ERNEST. w. .GOURD.

W'itnesses:

ARTHUR W. CROSSLEY, O. F. BROWN. 

